This invention relates to a disposal system for glass containers such as bottles. More particularly, this invention relates to a glass compacting system which pulverizes bottles and provides a sorting mechanism to separate different colored glass from the containers into at least three separate sorting receptacles.
It is known in the prior art to utilize a crusher and separator for cans and bottles wherein three containers can receive crushed aluminum cans, steel cans or crushed glass. This is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,435. In this patent, there is shown a gate 40 which is employed in conjunction with a drum 42 to separate glass as well as the cans and deposit them in their respective containers. A chute 36 is utilized in conjunction with the gate 40 for depositing the respective crushed articles in their respective containers.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,800,159 there is shown a can and bottle crushing and disposal machine wherein cans and glass are deposited in receptacles 78 and 82 by means of a butterfly valve plate 84. In German patent 27 45 378 there is disclosed two rotatable receptacles 3 and 17 for apparently receiving some type of crushed or shredded material. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,573,641 there is illustrated a two receptacle container system 50 for receiving crushed glass. However, there is no detail as to how they are employed in conjunction with the crushing area 39 and the crushing wheels 40.
In utilizing crushing and separator type devices such as the type previously described, there is a problem in conjunction with glass containers in that there is a variety of colors of glass which need to be separated. These usually are clear, green and brown. It would be highly desirable if there would be provided a glass crushing apparatus which cannot only crush the glass containers in a compacting like manner, but can also readily separate them into individual bins or receptacles according to their color. The prior art does not provide such a crushing and compacting mechanism which can effect the sorting of the different colors of crushed glass in an apparatus which is constructed with a minimum number of parts and in a compact manner.
It is an advantage of the present invention to provide an improved glass crushing and separating device.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a device of the foregoing type which has a minimum number of parts in its construction, yet compact in its design.
It is still another advantage of the present invention to provide a device of the foregoing type which has a high degree of reliability and a minimum amount of maintenance.
Still another advantage of the present invention is to provide a device of the foregoing type which has an exterior configuration that is aesthetically pleasing and is portable.